*Michael (pseudonym) was the first person to contact me about Watermark Church and it’s abusive practices, after he found my blog when researching similarities between Scientology & church abuse. I won’t tell *Michael’s story in it’s entirety, I will interject some of his experiences into what I have discovered during my research of Watermark Church’s ministries and practices.
Why won’t I tell *Michael’s complete story? Because he’s fearful.
I cannot overstate how this should alarm people to the abusive tactics of Watermark Community Church.
People leave churches all the time. Either a family moves, a person feels they outgrow the church and/or it’s programs, maybe hurt feelings or drama preceded a sudden exit – there are all kinds of reasons that people leave churches, but almost always it is exercised by someone’s free will under no duress or fear of repercussions whatsoever. Rarely does someone leave a church fearing that they will be surveilled, have it affect their employment & reputation, and cause longterm PTSD. Except when you leave Watermark Church.
All of these things happened to *Michael. During his later days at Watermark Church and continuing after he left, *Michael’s experiences included several behaviors and actions, which in his opinion, mimicked the legal definitions of stalking, malicious representation, slander, psychologically & financially abusive practices and manipulation. Just to name a few.
Know Before You Go
My husband and I were watching a movie the other night, the 1993 classic ‘The Firm‘, based on a novel by John Grisham. Tom Cruise’s character, Mitch McDeere is a Harvard Law school graduate that is courted & hired by a prestigious Memphis law firm that represents a powerful mob family in Chicago (unbeknownst to him). The FBI swoops in to try and use him to take down the law firm and the mobsters all at once. He meets with an FBI agent in a park in Washington DC, who proceeds to tell him, “They bring in the new rookie. Throw money at him; the car, the house, after a couple of years your kids are in private school, you’re used to the good life…then they tell you.” Astonished by the revelation that his new employer represents the mob, he asks FBI agent Moyle, ‘Who in the firm knows?” to which he responds, “Every partner knows.”
By then, it was too late. The new doe-eyed lawyer was in too deep, and life as he knew it would never be the same. This is what happens to some people at Watermark Church. They get caught up in the whirlwind before they discover the truth.
Love Bomb
If you’ve never been to Watermark Church’s sprawling Dallas Campus, it’s a sight to see. Lot’s of wood pallet walls, trendy decor, and of course a coffee shop. The atmosphere is very inviting and aesthetically appealing. There is a lot to like about being in that space and the staff and volunteers go out of their way to make you feel welcome. It’s all by design, of course.
That’s not to say that churches shouldn’t be inviting and friendly – they should – if the goal is to guide you into a fellowship of believers that have a common goal of worshipping the Lord in Spirit and in truth, take part in the breaking of bread (communion) and offering support and love in a community setting. That’s not the goal at Watermark Church, however. They want to control your life.
It all starts out with the ‘love-bombing’ (just like what happened in the movie, ‘The Firm’), which is a tactic commonly attributed to narcissists who draw in their victims with lofty promises and over-the-top love & affection. At first, you meet a lot of people, start going to membership meetings, join the church, become part of a community group. Then it’s meeting with your group every week, camping trips, coffee with the girls (or guys), bible studies. In the beginning you are blissfully unaware that just under the surface of all the whirlwind of activity and ‘belonging’, there is an undercurrent of control about to take hold of you. But you are in too deep.
COMMUNITY FORMATION
“At Watermark, we believe life transformation happens best in the context of relationships. Therefore, one of the most important steps we take to be fully devoted followers of Christ is to connect with others in a community group.”
Once you have joined or have been placed in a community group (CG), the control begins. As I detailed in *Susan’s story, if you are unable to find a group of people to form a CG, you must go through a multi-week process to be placed in a group. Once you have joined (or been randomly placed), you are expected to give your life story – immediately – at the first meeting. You may or may not know the 5-6 people you are sitting in the room with (doesn’t matter). It is your duty and requirement as a CG member to share your life story, which Watermark refers to as ‘Life Maps‘:
*Michael went through this process and joined a community group. He became heavily involved in all aspects of the community group, but soon discovered that ‘sharing time’ became an issue for him, like it was for *Susan. *Michael had a steady job, was stable in most areas of his life, and didn’t struggle with some of the same issues that the other men in his group did. Like *Susan, he was pressed to share more, and when he assured the group that he just didn’t have much to share in the way of struggles, he was accused of lying or holding back. It became an ongoing issue which caused him to be singled out more and more for not being ‘authentic’. He couldn’t understand why NOT struggling with things, like habitually viewing pornography, was suddenly a problem?
It’s because Watermark wants to know all of of your deepest darkest struggles & sins. Like Scientology, once they know these things, they can use them against you. According to Watermark Church, if you aren’t spilling your guts every single week, you aren’t living authentically. Even though the CG leaders (or even the members of the group) promise not to disclose any of this information, no one is legally obligated to maintain confidentiality.
*Michael was in a Community Group of men that he discovered were not particularly disciplined, dependable or trustworthy, yet he was expected to ‘do life’ with them and be completely authentic. This is where the system breaks down at the core. You cannot randomly (or otherwise) place 5-6 people in a group and immediately expect them all to uphold such high standards, without knowing these people and giving them the time to prove themselves trustworthy. There might be some VERY unsafe people grouped up, causing some serious damage, all in the name of ‘community’. It’s like a social experiment.
Community Core Values
Watermark Church has 6 core values for Community Groups:
- Community Core Value #1: Devote ourselves daily to a personal relationship with Jesus.
- Community Core Value #2: Pursue deep relationships with one another, based on love and acceptance.
- Community Core Value #3: Offer and receive biblical counsel in all areas of life.
- Community Core Value #4: Live authentically, sharing our struggles.
- Community Core Value #5: Encourage and admonish one another faithfully towards maturity.
- Community Core Value #6: Engage intentionally with our communities and the world to make disciples.
I’m going to focus in on a few of these. First, #3 – Offer and receive biblical counsel in ALL areas of life.
In *Susan’s story, she told me that in community group, you were expected to tell your group about any major decisions you were contemplating and the group was supposed to provide input and guidance into those decisions. This wasn’t simply a prayerful ‘I hope this works out for you‘ sort of deal – the group would ACTUALLY tell you what to do. In *Michael’s case, he disclosed to his community group a business opportunity that he was considering. The information he shared in the group was leaked, and he was pressured by other church members outside of his community group regarding that business opportunity. This a perfect example of why you cannot place implicit trust in a group of people just because you are in a community group at a church.
#5: Encourage and admonish one another faithfully towards maturity. This is essentially a scaled down version of church discipline. Each community group member has the right to call you out on something, anytime, whether you like it or not.
“Any admonishment should be delivered with patience, grace, and compassion. If someone doesn’t respond initially, it could become a warning, or even a loving rebuke or strong correction (1 Thessalonians 5:14a, 2 Timothy 4:2).”
In *Michael’s case, he was ‘admonished’ by his community group when he was invited out to dinner (not knowing the reason why) then blindsided when he was told that he was in trouble for not attending community group often enough…which brings me to #6 (and the reason for *Michael’s decline in CG attendance)
#6: Engage intentionally with our communities and the world to make disciples
*Michael had tried repeatedly to engage his community group members in mission activities, but they were not receptive and didn’t bother to participate. *Michael was beginning to feel that there was a great deal of hypocrisy going on, given that he was constantly being called out as ‘not living authentically’ for being a nice guy, while at the same time he was the one trying to organize serving opportunities to which no one was willing to participate. He had become so fed up that he started to miss a few community group meetings – then HE gets ‘admonished’ in gang-up style. Crazy cycle, right?
Other Observations
There were other things that *Michael experienced or noted while he attended Watermark. For example, people that he personally knew, people with obvious character flaws, were given staff positions. Those same people were later observed to be involved in rampant gossiping, crossing boundaries, and lying about people to gain control or manipulate situations to play out in their favor.
Why are you here?
“If you’re pursuing community to get Christian friends, to study the Bible, or to get an accountability partner, those are all great things, but you might be setting your sights too low. We’d encourage you to pray that God uses biblical community to make you more like Jesus.” –Watermark Community Core Values
And that’s called manipulation, folks.
For as long as the church has been in existence, this is the EXACT formula for getting connected in the Christian community – but Watermark Church says it’s just not enough…why?
If you want to be more like Jesus, you have to do it OUR way!
Their way is by controlling- knowing everything about you through unrelenting, constant confession & sharing, knowing how much money you make & how you spend your money, full input regarding your life decisions, AND the freedom to ‘love you’ by admonishing anyone in your community group – at will.
BTW – this is some Grade-A scripture twisting by Watermark Church on why you should share your financial information with the community group. No where BEFORE or AFTER Matthew 6:3-4 or II Corinthians 9:2 is any further context given that would justify their belief that a Christian should expose their financial portfolio to a room full of people. AGAIN – no one is legally obligated to keep that information confidential – so if you win the lottery, chances are that information is going find its way out of the community group.
What happens if someone doesn’t want to share about their finances? Then you pressure them, of course! They must have a spiritual problem and you should have them provide scriptures to justify why they don’t want to provide their financial information. (see image above)
At the end of each section in Session #4 – Giving, community group members are required to fill out financial worksheets in regards to their finances: income, debt & giving. THEN they are required to provide a copy of every worksheet to each member of their community group!
Then you are asked to ‘come prepared to ask questions‘ – with everyone’s financial portfolio in hand.
After my last post, I had people express doubt that a church would actually ask it’s members to provide detailed financial information. I’m providing links and screenshots of Watermark Church literature that explicitly asks its members to do exactly that. This is really happening, in a very large mega-church in Dallas, TX. And it’s crazy.
*click here to go to Watermark Church’s Community Resources page to view all of their online content
Below are screenshots of the worksheets that community group members are required to fill out regarding their finances. Click on each one to enlarge. These are filled out by each community group member, then copies made and provided to all of the other members.
To Obey or Not Obey
These ‘Community Group Core Values are not negotiable. If you chose not to participate, you will be singled out and you will be admonished. Case in point – this comment left on my post ‘The Aftermath: Stories from Former Watermark Church Members‘:
What I’m curious to know is if Watermark Church lead pastor Todd Wagner has to provide his detailed financial information to a community group? Do the elders have to also provide theirs? Do they have to confer with a community group & get approval before they buy a car, a house, or even take a vacation?
HEAVY EMPHASIS ON CHURCH MEMBERSHIP
Watermark Church pushes for everyone to become members of a church, because in their opinion, it is ‘assumed’ in the Bible. (they didn’t provide any scripture to support this). Of course membership at Watermark involves signing a membership covenant and agreeing to follow all the rules (which includes joining a community group & following all of those rules), lest you come under church discipline.
Also, they believe that if you aren’t a member of a local church, you are essentially a rebel, ‘dismembered from the ‘body’, exiled from the ‘kingdom’ and an orphan of the faith.
According to the online document ‘Governance‘, if you want to withdraw your membership from Watermark Church, you can only do so under these three conditions:
- Move away
- Join another church
- No longer fulfill the requirements of membership (whatever that means).
You CANNOT, however, attempt to withdraw your membership to avoid church discipline, as I referenced in my previous post in regards to a lawsuit that Watermark Church was involved in. (click here to read that story)
Additionally, if you are removed from membership by church leadership, they have the right to share the reasons why with anyone they want to – and you gave them the right to when you signed the membership covenant. Remember all of that sharing in Community Group – living authentically, telling everyone about your finances, your struggles, getting their permission to make any life decision? It’s open season for them to share that information with anyone they want to, and you can’t do anything about it.
IT’S OVER
*Michael knew he was done with Watermark Church when he was invited to another ‘blindside’ meeting by a Watermark Church staff member. It was an attempted ‘blindside’, but *Michael knew the real reason behind the meeting, which is why he chose to go in the first place.
In this meeting he was advised not to ‘associate’ with another church member. *Michael knew this church member was being singled out to be avoided & isolated, then further abused by gossip to control the narrative. *Michael already knew beforehand that they were using members to make this person feel excluded, rejected and punished for not falling in line with what Watermark Church wanted him to do. The Watermark Church staff member attempted to use *Michael to help further isolate and exclude this wayward church member by exaggerating details of a situation in order to cause him to think negatively of this person, and thus no longer associate with him. In fact, the staff member tried to instill fear in *Michael over the situation, as to further drive home his agenda. *Michael then knew that Watermark was not a healthy church and this meeting further confirmed his decision to leave. He didn’t formally withdraw his membership, to avoid suspicion and detection. I’ve heard from several Watermark Church members who simply let their membership ‘lapse’, instead of notifying the church that they want to withdraw their membership. Every person stated it is out of fear of repercussions that they have done this. They fear excessive contact & pressure from the church that they are on a sinful path and/or that Watermark Church will pursue formal church discipline against them. While it might seem like a moot point to most of us – to someone who has been indoctrinated in this system, when they finally gain the courage to leave, these are very real fears. It’s a clear sign of an abusive environment.
I found some interesting comments about Watermark Church from a very cursory search online. I think they speak for themselves:
In the Watermark Church online document titled, ‘Dealing With Financial Hardship‘, what the commenter referenced above about a community group supporting one of their members by writing her a $500 check every month definitely lines up with their teachings:
I am simply astonished that thousands of people have subjected themselves to this level of control in their lives. This is not freedom in Christ – this is just another form of bondage that Watermark Church has devised. It’s legalism re-packaged in reformed gospel-speak, and it’s abusive.
'We Are Not A Cult'
I find it so interesting that Watermark Church has had to repeatedly defend itself against being labeled a cult. A commenter on my last post referenced a message that was preached to the youth department by Ryan Garrahan on Feb. 2, 2019, so I went and listened to it. It did not disappoint.
First of all, Ryan did NOTHING to answer the actual concerns about WHY Watermark is sometimes labeled a cult – he went straight into defense-mode. Their defense, interestingly enough, is that anyone who thinks Watermark Church is a cult is the one with a problem, and Ryan gave 4 reasons why (these are direct quotes):
- “Someone is unsure about themselves, insecure – so they will belittle you and challenge you about Watermark, to make themselves feel better because they are lost, hurt or broken. YOU are the closest one they can take it out on. Other people are controlled by the flesh, so they drag Watermark people down. Insecurity comes from past hurts from the church.”
- “Misinformation or gossip”
- “Confusion-people are confused about how Watermark applies God’s Word. The way we apply God’s word will always seem excessive and misplaced for someone who doesn’t understand the Gospel. People SHOULD be confused! I Corinthians says the world will hate us. They’ve never been part of a church that is a universal church community that looks different than something they’ve never experienced. Watermark operates more like the universal church.”
- “Selfishness or denial. They are afraid of what it would cost them to agree with you. Those people are deceived so offer them something better.”
Ryan then challenges the students to ask the following 3 questions when asked if Watermark Church is a cult:
- What do you mean by that?
- How did you come to that conclusion?
- Have you ever considered?
Instead of actually addressing why Watermark is being repeatedly labeled as a cult, these students are being further indoctrinated to ignore those concerns and place the blame for them on those who would question the organization.
Folks, if your church can’t defend why it’s not a cult, and instead blames the people who question them as being the problem, then the CHURCH is the problem. Get away as fast as you can!
My fellow watch blogger Julie Anne at Spiritual Sounding Board shared this video on the BITE model for cults. I have read some articles on this before, and find it incredibly interesting. The BITE model was developed by Steven Hassan, who was a former member of the ‘Moon’ cult in the 1970’s. You can read more about it on his website, Freedom of Mind. In the video below, it’s quite clear that Watermark Church, while maintaining traditional Christian doctrine, is operating in a many ways like a cult.
I hope that more people will begin to see the harm that this church is causing and that it is dangerous. I know that there are a lot of people out there that have been hurt by this church who are too afraid to speak up. This is a side-effect of the mega-church model. The entity becomes so big, that it’s influence reaches far and wide, into local industry, mutual relationships, etc. When you leave a church of this size or have a falling out or disagreement, the after effects can be life altering. It has forced many people to move or go into hiding. A very sad reality for many.
I had another person ask me – what do you intend to accomplish by writing posts about Watermark Church? Well, I don’t have an agenda, per se’. I just write about the truth. Oftentimes it is a simply a case of someone reaching out to me with their story, looking for a safe place to talk about their experience. Do I believe writing posts about Watermark Church will cause them to change their policies? Probably not. Most people are content to carry on the way they always have and have no desire to be challenged in their beliefs. It’s only when they are really truly hurt or know someone who was hurt, that they will see the truth. If one person reads my post and feels validated about what they experienced or gains the courage to speak about how they were hurt at Watermark, then it’s worth it. Also, people deserve to know the truth about what is really going on at Watermark Church – not just the flashy polished product that most people see. There is an underbelly of control and abuse that starts at the top with the leadership – and as long as these guys remain in control, there’s little hope for change.
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Just tried out CityBridge in Plano today which used to be part of Watermark. I remember hearing some things about Watermark and was wondering if I would get the cult vibes. Totally got love bombed; I never find churches to be this over the top with visitors. It was nice butttttt I could feel massive cult vibes. Kinda want to keep going to see it play out.
I always knew it was a cult. Christianity is not what this so called church is.
I was a member in the mid 2000’s and lead a community group. It’s sad to see how the church moved in the direction of being more cult like. I had concerns while attending and when I decided to leave it was a BIG deal. I was called repeatedly. I was told I was not allowed to talk poorly about WM leadership and was heavily pressured to say WM leadership didn’t do anything wrong.
As I learned how WM was initially started, out of manipulative behaviors and lies, I knew I had to leave.
This sounds so much like the Boston Church of Christ that I attended about 20 years ago…it was part of the group out of Gainesville FL. Small groups you were required to attend. Must have a discipleship partner that you shared every thing with and they would change them if they felt you were not growing or open. Once I became a leader and attending the leaders meetings I was shocked to find out how they talked about those not in leadership…I finally left when I discovered that they were following me around to see who I was spending time… Read more »
I’ve been keeping track of there regen program for same sex attraction. It’s a 12 step like program. I’ve heard many stories about their type of conversion therapy. Any stories out there other than the one in the news? Also I’m not a WM member or past member but I too was a Target by their members for speaking out against his influence in the public schools in LH. Harassed by members at work amongst other things. I can see and understand why ex members might be scared. They yield a lot of power in the community
Can anyone tell me what is Todd Wagners past? I can’t find anything about his childhood, where he grew up and his religious background. I think having that information would offer great insight and explain some things. I know his church was started in Lake Highlands at the HS and then he gained enough followers and was able to purchase a house in HP. I just find it odd that everyone on their website gives their life’s testimony and he doesn’t say much about his past.
Been a member for over 9 years and have never experienced the things many of you are talking about. Maybe you just didn’t want to be authentic in certain areas and choose to not move forward. Yes, membership is biblical, but I’ve also never felt uncomfortable with anything mentioned here, nor do I share all my secrets with the church. I share with my community and the groups of people I trust, who have helped guide me into some better decision making. I’ve also never shared my income with anyone at the church, but my community knows a little. Again,… Read more »
http://www.dianelangberg.com/2020/03/wolvessheepandshepherds/
When I asked Ron Smith, the Watermark Church appointed “Community Launcher/Shepherd” for our new Community group for a compelling reason to be in a community group he replied as follows (this is his text message to me): The #1 compelling reason for community is that Watermark elders have made it mandatory for membership in the church, hence the name Watermark Community Church. They have stated 6 Core values for every community member to adhere to in order to be a member of the community.” Ron also stated that Bible Study is not a part of the Community agenda. I have… Read more »
Two anecdotes: Through a friend I learned of a professional counselor making note of how many Watermark clients she had who were women who felt emotionally abused and demeaned by their husbands. She called Watermark to inform them of her concerns and was told “It’s none if your business. We’ handle this by ourselves.” The second is sort of humorous. A friend had a baby and a new neighbor kept bringing food. It was curious to her why this neighbor continued to bring them food after the typical once or twice. I jokingly said “Maybe they’re from Watermark” (referring to… Read more »
Jan, emotional abuse and demeaning relationships are somewhat of a ‘watermark’ of of how they ‘care for’ the people who become involved. One time during a sermon years ago Todd commented how his wife was set up with people to call should his behavior become too much for her to deal with. At least that was how I understood what he said. The indication in the sermon I took as this type behavior was common in the marriages of core members, and this system for family members to have a safe network should the man become overwhelming was being recommended.… Read more »
Thank you for these articles. My husband has been involved with Watermark for over two years beginning while we were separated. He is heavily involved in it and has brought along my impressionable twelve year old daughter. We were raised Baptist and raised our daughter that way initially. I tried to attend their services, tried Re-Engage but I always felt icked-out by the whole thing. He told me several times that my failure to participate has limited him from being involved in a community group, blah blah blah. Everyone acts super happy, wanting a high five that you are there.… Read more »
Wow – I am impressed. You tuned right into what most, including myself, ignored because we were too distracted by the perceived success and engaging teaching styles. Definitely good intuition to be concerned for your daughter. Anna may be able to recommend some professional reading materials, which would help you to educate your daughter in a way at her age she will be able to see clearly. This is a tough one. I pray your able to navigate how to get her to be independent and not fall dependent on WM for her validation.
The following is from a discussion I had in Nov 2019 and speaks directly to your statement regarding it being all about WM. (Cult red flag): When I began attending WM I volunteered regularly with homeless, reached out to help others, believed in people etc. After surviving the mental mind games; requirements which forced your focus onto WM (over Gods children as a whole); moved from a small/community group dialogue of what can we do to serve God’s children and one another – to a focus on everyone’s sins/short comings; and focus on surviving their destructive behaviors – under the… Read more »
Thank you for your reply! I appreciate it!
@WorriedMom, I would love to connect with you. I’m in a similar similar situation.
I had experience with Watermark’s head pastor in the 1990’s. I think these behemoths are fueled by a bizarre tendency of people to adulate and worship grand pumba pastors – the fealty and reverence paid to them always astonishes me. It turns the church into a big business and it’s marquee names into celebrities with huge swaying power. it is a full on tribal mind zonk with powerful forces to fit in ——>”let me tell you how to vote – What to think of Starbucks and Amazon and iPhones vs Android and this politician and that person and what a… Read more »
What strikes me most clearly is that Watermark fits clearly two of Dr Robert Lifton’s 8 markers of cults: the demand for purity and the cult of confession. I’ve written and researched extensively on this topic, and have done podcast episodes on cults also; this definitely sounds like it’s on the cult spectrum.
I thought about visiting there. Glad I never did.
The more I read this story, this sounds like the opposite of how Fellowship Church treated members (I’m a former member there) but from a different angle. At Fellowship they really didn’t want anyone who had a prior history of really bad sins; they wanted stable couples with children since they usually have more $$$. I knew several people who visited, but who clearly didn’t “fit in” and later left. My former GF was one of them and she was run off, I was run off for supporting her. (We’re now back together but to the extent we go anywhere… Read more »
Yes- spiritual predators seek vulnerable people.
Just a thought here – Nueva inadvertently lays out some data which is interesting. She first discusses what I see as the wolf. The wolf is destructive to the souls of the wayward through its non Christ like behaviors. Then she shares the sheep aspect which is they did help financially which is Christ like. When we see these inconsistencies should we pay attention that this may in fact be a wolf in sheep’s clothing? What really matters is care for ones spirit which in her example is being ravaged. The distraction, or sheep’s clothing, is material earthly help which… Read more »
Whatever you think Anna; however, my 12 year tenure at WM and being in 4 CG’s during that time and having NEVER been asked for financial info speaks for itself. I don’t consider the one couple in my CG that reviewed my expenses so they could advocate for me as abuse. I guess I was more grateful than offended. Excellent insight DB! I wish I could lay out my whole story because it was indeed my soul that felt abandoned and discarded. While help with finances kept the anxiety under control, it was the lack of Jesus I experienced from… Read more »
Thank you for the validation Nueva. I agree with you regarding gaining a new more Christ like understanding of how empathy is what is important to people who are struggling, also after having been in the midst of this organization. I wonder if the pride and arrogance just can not handle situations where the leaders are not properly identifying what is causing the symptom (sin) of the actual core struggle an individual is having. The reason I go to pride is because often times pride does not allow the person to admit they are incorrect or unable to identify the… Read more »
Having attended Watermark’s Dallas campus for over 12 years, my attendance came to an abrupt end when I was unfortunate enough to notice their leadership’s aggressive handling of the broken and wayward, as well as experience the lack of compassion and even humanity toward the victim of another’s sin. These days pride in their processes seems to trump being Jesus to the wounded. “Grace” is a term often used at WM, although I found it either seldom accurately exercised or forgotten completely behind their right to execute Matthew 18 – because we all know punishing people draws them back to… Read more »
Thank you for your comment. You stated that Moneywise is a separate program within Watermark Church, which is true, but the documentation that I provided is from the Community Core Values curriculum, and the Moneywise program is embedded into the core values, which members of the CG are required to follow. I have spoken to several former members who have told me that they were asked to disclose their entire financial portfolio TO THEIR COMMUNITY GROUP, and not due to a benevolence request. They were told that since money was something very personal to them, what they earned & how… Read more »
Part I and Part II both great and spot on. I am a WM “survivor”. My experience is that many, if not most, are content with seeing and experiencing the many great things WM does well and they are unable or unwilling to recognize the things they don’t do well. The problem is that those things that they do not do well are not just bad but are cancerous. My experience at WM did not destroy my faith. It challenged it and ultimately made it stronger. But it was a brutal experience that cost a marriage and many other relationships.… Read more »
GREAT Article. This actually helps Provide understanding to a variety of different conversations I have had over the years with people who attended this organization. Helps connect the dots so to say. Thank you for providing educational dialogue which is very needed and an under served area for those exploring Christianity. I often wonder if complicit Christians are becoming one of the most effective tools to the mis representation of Jesus teachings in today’s world. Perhaps more focused prayer from true believers to individually and collectively speak truth and take a stand for Jesus examples in the Bible will go… Read more »